The invention relates for example to a disc brake for an automotive vehicle of the type described and represented in French patent application FR-A1-3.004.500 which includes:                a brake disc which extends in a plane transverse to an axial orientation axis of rotation of the disc;        a support fixed with respect to a vehicle chassis;        at least one brake pad each of which includes a friction lining a friction transverse face of which cooperates with an associated brake track of the disc, the brake track being axially slidingly mounted in the support between an active front position in which said friction face bears on the associated annular track of the disc, and an inactive rear position in which said friction face is axially spaced from said associated annular track of the disc, by a determined operating play;        at least one spring for the elastic return of the brake pad to its inactive position, which is for example interposed between the brake pad and the support.        
In a disc brake, the sliding of the brake pads to their active position is controlled by a piston. Both brake pads thereby strongly pinch the disc to slow down its rotation. The braking operation is thereby an active operation.
The brake pads are pushed back to their inactive position by the rotating disc. This is thereby a passive operation.
However, it occurs that the disc does not push back the brake pads with a sufficient force to space them apart at a sufficient distance from the disc. This can for example happen when the sliding of the brake pads is of insufficient quality, or even jammed, or if the design creates some “restoration”.
Even though the brake pads are not actively tightened against the disc anymore, each of the annular tracks of the same however undergoes a permanent friction with the friction lining carried by the associated brake pad. Therefore, the friction linings undergo a premature non-operational wear.
Furthermore, this permanent friction is likely to cause a temperature rise harmful to some members of the disc brake.
This permanent friction also causes the occurrence of a residual torque which opposes to the disc rotation. This increases the vehicle consumption, while decreasing the vehicle performance.
To solve this wear and temperature rise problems, the previously mentioned document provides a disc brake in which the elastic return spring includes means for compensating for a wear play of the friction lining of the brake pad which are plastically deformed when the stroke of the brake pad to its active position is higher than said determined operating play.
To that end, the elastic return spring, which is interposed between the fixed support of the disc brake and an associated brake pad, includes at least one axial orientation segment which is elastically deformable by traction between an idle state and a maximum elongation state the value of which is equal to the determined operating play, the spring including at least one plastically deformable segment, under the effect of an axial traction strain, forming said means for compensating for the wear play, this plastically deformable segment being shaped to be plastically elongated when the stroke of the brake pad to its active position is higher than the determined operating play.
In this document, the elastic return spring includes an attachment portion for attaching the elastic return spring to the fixed support, and a rigid connecting branch with a generally axial orientation the free end segment of which is shaped to cooperate with the associated brake pad. According to another known design, the free end segment is attached to the brake pad.
In this document, the attachment portion for attaching the elastic return spring is hairpin-shaped with a tongue which includes a body which axially extends and continues to an elastic expansion leg which is folded rearwardly against the body, forming a front fold forming a hinge at the front end of the tongue.
The tongue and the expansion leg are received in a notch of a housing of the fixed support which has a complementary transverse cross-section in order to enable the return member to be vertically immobilised.
Such a design in particular requires a shape of the notch, which is difficult to machine and requiring a pinning operation, and results in a complex mounting of the attachment part, in particular when the housing includes a guide rail, because due to its hairpin shape, the attachment portion overlaps a vertical bottom of the guide rail.